Tag Fox & Ink Books

Wirtz / We

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Wirtz
Matt and Tom Oldfield
Dino Books

This latest addition to the Ultimate Football Heroes tells the story of current Liverpool star Florian Wirtz and his footballing journey from the school playground to the hallowed turf of Anfield.
Liverpool fans and avid young followers of football alike, will doubtless enjoy reading how having become the youngest goal scorer in the history of Bundesliga, Wirtz later went on to win the German title with Bayer 04 Leverkusen. Having grown tremendously as a player under the management of Xabi Alonso, Wirtz was signed by Slot’s Reds in the summer of 2025 and is now seeking to take his place in Merseyside folklore. I highly recommend you get you hands on a copy of the book and discover how you too might be able to follow in Florian’s footsteps.
(This review was written by 10 year old Sam who is an avid soccer fan.)

Interestingly the first woman featured in the next book is a soccer player too.

We
Yu Yi, designed by Yu Rong
Fox & Ink Books

This picture book focuses on women who have become highly successful in a wide range of fields from maths to music and space travel to soccer.

First off we meet world-famous footballer Marta Vieira da Silva who grew up in the Brazilian town of Dios Riachos and played football in the streets with the other children. She always yearned to be a football player and her favourite player was Rivaldo. She became her school soccer team’s top scorer and as a teenager saved up and travelled to Rio to try out for the Vasco da Gama club. Since then she’s played in five world cups, scored seventeen goals and become the top scoring player in World Cup history. Described as the biggest name in women’s football, she was honoured as FIFA’s Player of the Year six times – amazing!

Other women featured include Wang Yaping who became China’s first woman space walker and Nobel prize-winning scientist Carolyn Bertozzi.
All these women and the others included – the titular ‘We’ – followed their dreams, took risks and their contributions have changed the world we live in today. A book to inspire young readers to dream big too and not be put off by naysayers.

Baxter’s View

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Baxter’s View
Kerri Cunningham (Murphy’s Sketches)
Fox & Ink Books

Herein we meet siblings, Rory the elder and his younger brother, Baxter. They see the world differently: ‘Baxter likes to bounce, and hum, and flap. Sometimes it can take a while to get wherever they’re going. Sometimes this makes Rory cross.’

We join Baxter and Rory as they visit the park with their mum. On the way Baxter enjoys some puddle paddling, and Rory notices how the leaves dance beneath his brother’s wellies before joining him in some splashy fun.

At the park gate Baxter stops to feel the long grass tickling him, and having watched him, Rory runs his fingers through the blades, which made him feel calmer. By the pond Baxter emulates the ducks and his brother is amused at his actions. Very eager to reach the playground, Rory is getting grumpy but he does as Mum suggests and lies beneath the tree branches and watches creatures above in the flickering sunlight, appreciating its beauty from Baxter’s viewpoint.

Of course they do eventually get to the playground and the brothers enjoy themselves.

The following week when it’s park visiting time again, it’s evident that Rory has learned that by slowing down, you can see exciting and wonderful things.

As well as celebrating neurodiversity, this sweet, earnest story gently encourages everyone to slow down and take time to see the beauty of the natural world. A book to share and discuss in EYFS and KS1 classrooms as well as with family members.